This week the Royal Society announced plans for their 350th anniversary celebration in 2010 that promises to be a public celebration of the contribution and future of science.

The centrepiece of the anniversary celebrations will be a nine-day science festival in London in partnership with the Southbank Centre to be held at the Royal Festival Hall.

There will be events at museums, libraries and galleries across the UK in the anniversary year including performances, talks, workshops and concerts.

“Science is the un-ending quest to understand the world around us. It was this pursuit that brought the founders of the Royal Society together nearly 350 years ago," said The Royal Society president Martin Rees.

"For them, the search for scientific knowledge was as much a part of part of our culture as any other activity. Our anniversary year will celebrate the spirit of these individuals.”

The Royal Society was formed in 1660 when 12 men, including Robert Boyle and Sir Robert Moray, met at a lecture given by Christopher Wren and decided to found a college to promote experimental learning.

The society has three roles as a learned society, a funding agency and an academy of science.

Anniversary celebrations will be officially launched in November 2009 and will carry through to November 2010.

Courtesy of The Royal Society

Stephen Cox, Executive Secretary of the Royal Society said: “People often forget how central science is to all of our lives. Science is life saving medicines, plasma screen TVs and I-pods.

"It is about new solutions to the world’s energy and food needs, addressing the threats of climate change and making the world a safer place.

“Our anniversary will be an opportunity to look forward to what science can do in the 21st century,” he added.

As well as events for the pubic there will be a range of activities for scientists looking at the problems that humans are facing in the 21st century.

London venues taking part in the celebrations include the Natural History Museum, British Museum, Science Museum, National Portrait Gallery and St Pauls Cathedral along with more than 50 other locations in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

For more information about the Royal Society and the 350th Anniversary celebrations please go to www.royalsociety.org.